Active Play Ideas for Summer

Get active kids outside to play and exercise with these fun games and ideas.

Get Moving

Do your grandchildren love playing sports, making up their own competitions, and generally running wild? These simple activities will get everyone off the couch and outside working up a sweat.

Four Square

Draw a court on the ground with playground chalk—it’s just four equal-size quadrants, each at least 4 feet by 4 feet—and label them 1, 2, 3, and 4. The player in square 1 "serves" by hitting a rubber playground ball with his or her hands into one of the other squares. After one bounce, the player in that square must hit the ball into someone else's square, or that player is out. Players may never carry, catch, or hold the ball. Rotate spots based on game play — if the player in square 2 is called out, that player moves to square 4 (or to the sidelines if more than four players are involved) and the other players move up. The player in square 1 always starts the round and is often called the king; in some versions of the game, the king can make special rules that all the other players must follow.

H-O-R-S-E

In this classic basketball shooting game, players take turns calling shots: "Three-pointer from right here — nothing but net!" If a player makes it, his or her opponent needs to make the exact same shot or collect a letter; the first player to be saddled with H, O, R, S, and E loses.

Wall Ball

There are as many variations of this game as there are schoolyards. But for this simple version, all you really need is a wall and a ball — a tennis ball will do. Playing one-on-one, the first player throws the ball off the wall and the other player must catch it, in the air or on one bounce, and then throw it back off the wall (no holding or carrying). When a player misses or drops the ball (blocking opponents from getting to the ball is illegal), his or her opponent gains the point. Games typically go to 21 points. If there are more than two players, a player steps to the sidelines when he or she loses a point.

MLB Power Pro Pitching Machine

The MLB Power Pro Pitching Machine is one of the best toys out there for 7- to 9-year-olds because this simple machine will help them learn to hit or improve their batting. Before you know it, they'll be slugging like pros! Click here to buy. »

Yoga Poses

Simple yoga positions are fun and good for you. They can be done indoors or outside on a beautiful day. Try this simple tandem exercise to start:

Seesaw Stretches your hamstrings and back while strengthening your abdominals. Sit facing your partner, foot to foot, with both your legs in V's. Hold hands while one person leans forward and the other leans back, then alternate, making sure not to yank or pull each other too hard. Repeat ten times.

Frisbee Golf

All you need for this game is some room, some imagination, and a Frisbee for each player. Before teeing off, agree on a target or "hole" (such as a tree, a sign, or a similar landmark), then take aim with the disc. The goal is to reach the target in the fewest number of throws. The player who accomplishes this gets to select the next hole and go first. Play as many holes as you like. The player with the fewest throws at the end of the game is the winner.

Sardines

It's hide-and-seek flipped on its head. While one player hides, a group of seekers close their eyes and count to a predetermined number. When they finish counting, the hunt is on! The seekers spread out to search; as each finds the hiding player, he or she joins the hider in the hiding place, until the last seeker finds the spot (where the players are now packed like sardines). The last player to find the hiding place becomes the next person to hide.

Wacky Races

Remember three-legged races? Your grandkids have probably never even seen one! Or try a walking race where each competitor holds a spoon in his or her mouth with an egg balanced on it. Or make up your own obstacle courses, using whatever is around. For example, turn on the sprinkler to make a water obstacle. Using your imaginations to create a race is half the fun!

Play Catch

No matter how addictive a video game might become, this simple outdoor activity will always beat it. Hurl a baseball, toss a football, fling a Frisbee, whatever works for you and your grandkids. Give pointers on the best way to throw, but don't be pushy. Just enjoy the time outside together.

Make Your Own Hopscotch Court

Let your imaginations, and your chalk, run wild! Draw a bunch of boxes for you and your grandkids to hop through. Create wacky rules for what happens when you land on a given square: Recite the alphabet backwards; dump a bucket of water on your head; jump rope on one foot — whatever sounds silliest!

More Active Fun!

Looking for more activities to do with the grandkids? We have 90 more ideas for summer activities you and the kids can enjoy together! Go back to the main page »